Facts are at a discount as the Communist Party of India (Marxist) and the Congress, which head the ruling Left Democratic Front and the opposition United Democratic Front respectively, go all out to score points with an eye to winning the forthcoming Lok Sabha elections.
The CPI (M) leaves no stone unturned as it seeks to live down the reputation of having supported the United Progressive Alliance government at the Centre, led by the Congress, for more than four years.
Last week the two parties were involved in a verbal war over food supplies. Allegations and counter-allegations flew thick and fast after the Centre cut allocation of rice to families above the poverty line (APL) in the State.
According to Food Minister C Divakaran, Kerala needs 175,000 metric tonnes (MT) of grains a month to give 35 kg to each of five million APL families. However, during the past four months, the Centre had provided only 17,000 MT. Now it has stopped all supplies until December.
Chief Minister VS Achuthanandan said the Centre’s decision amounted to pushing the people of the State into starvation. CPI-M State secretary Pinarayi Vijayan and CPI State secretary Veliyam Bhargavan characterised the Centre’s action as reprisal for the Left parties’ withdrawal of support to the UPA government.
Leader of the Opposition Oommen Chandy and Pradesh Congress President Ramesh Chennithala rose to the Centre’s defence. They said the Centre had suspended supplies as the State government had violated the terms of an agreement under which it was required to contribute 168,000 MT of grains to the Central pool.
Divakaran, who belongs to the CPI, said the Chief Minister and other ministers would stage a dharna (sit-in) in New Delhi if the Centre did not reverse the decision.
Achuthanandan did not go that far. He said he would lead a delegation to represent the State’s case before the Prime Minister. An agitation would be mounted in New Delhi if the Centre did not concede the State’s demand, he added.
Onam, the biggest festival on the Keralite’s calendar, falls next month. For several weeks, prices of food and other essential commodities have been rising. The spectre of food scarcity at this time is naturally a source of great worry.
At the root of the current controversy is a well-known paradox. The State has a public distribution system (PDS), which covers the entire population, but not everybody buys grains from the PDS outlets.
The PDS outlets supply grains at subsidised rates to those below the poverty line (BPL). While the BPL families draw their requirements from these outlets, the APL families generally buy from the open market.
The PDS outlets divert the unsold APL quota to rice mills and other commercial interests. This was what prompted the Centre to cut the quota.
Responding to the State government’s criticism of its action, the Centre clarified that there was no cause for anxiety as the State had sufficient grain stocks to manage until the next crop arrives.
The Hindu quoted an official of the State Civil Supplies Corporation Limited (Supplyco) as saying it had procured 170,000 MT of paddy from this year’s crop and converted 110,600 MT (68%) into rice. Out of this, 31,211 MT was transferred to the Central pool for distribution to APL families till June 20.
Thereafter, the official told the newspaper on condition of anonymity, the State government informed the Centre that it would not be making any further contributions to the Central pool as it proposed to distribute rice directly to the APL families.
The Supplyco official’s statement, which has not been refuted by the State government, suggests that the allegations of vindictiveness levelled against the Centre by the leaders of the CPI-M and the CPI are patently false. But the two parties have already unleashed a wave of protests by their youth wings.
In any case, the Centre has announced a special allocation of 10,000 MT of rice and 20,000 MT of wheat to the State for the Onam season.
The Rs. 18.4 billion package to boost paddy cultivation in Kuttanad in Alappuzha district was also caught in a needless controversy. When the Centre approved the package on July 24, it was stated that the State would be required to pay only Rs. 46.5 million towards its cost. A few days later, the Chief Minister alleged the Centre had gone back on the commitment. After Union Minister Vayalar Ravi refuted the charge, he conceded that he had erred.--Gulf Today, Sharjah, August 4,2008.
Monday, August 4, 2008
Thursday, July 31, 2008
Media needs to be more circumspect in literate Kerala
Indo Asian News Service (IANS) distributed on Wednesday a commentary by me on how Kerala responded to the recent bomb threats.
Here is the link to the commentary, as it appeared at the Sulekha.com site
Here is the link to the commentary, as it appeared at the Sulekha.com site
Tuesday, July 29, 2008
Tears In God's Own Country
As the Kerala government goes on an overdrive to sell tourism, its major destinations are beginning to resemble garbage dumps, says K.A.Shaji in an article, distributed by Countercurrents.org.
See Tears In God's Own Country
See Tears In God's Own Country
Monday, July 28, 2008
Kerala law to save rice crop unlikely to succeed
THE Kerala Assembly, before going into recess last week, adopted a measure aimed at saving the State's vanishing rice fields. There are good reasons to believe that it is doomed to fail.
The measure contains loopholes which may well defeat its purpose. One of its provisions permits the government to acquire the fields for any public purpose. Another allows the land owner to raise other crops by way of "rotation of crops."
Rice, once a major crop of Kerala, has been on the decline since the birth of the State. The process has gained speed in recent years. According to official figures, during the eighth, ninth and tenth five-year plans, covering the period 1992-2007, the area under paddy shrank annually by 22,000 hectares, 13,000 hectares and 11,657 hectares respectively. Currently, the area under paddy is less than 275,000 hectares. Many farmers abandoned rice cultivation as high wages and input costs made it uneconomical.
Wage levels in the State are among the highest in the country, thanks to the farm labour unions' bargaining capacity. Fragmentation of holdings resulting from the rise in population in the early part of the last century also contributed to the development. Many holdings were too small to permit the use of machines. Even large ones could not use machines because of opposition from the unions.
The much acclaimed land reform made its contribution too. The tenants, who benefited from it, wanted their children to take up white-collar jobs instead of going into farming. In their hands, land became an asset to be used to further their middle class ambitions. Those who retained interest in farming switched to remunerative cash crops. Those who lost interest in it either sold the land or left it fallow and switched to other occupations.
Over the years, the government took several steps to restore rice to its former glory, but did not succeed. In 2004-05, the Agriculture department launched a scheme to grow paddy on fallow land. Two years later, an official report acknowledged that it had not been effective.
A law that prohibits the use of paddy fields for other purposes except with the government's prior permission has been in force for many years already. This has not prevented the raising of other crops in such fields or their conversion into housing plots.
Chief Minister VS Achuthanandan, while in the opposition, had personally led a campaign to save paddy fields. The agitation took the form of wanton destruction of banana plantations raised on paddy fields.
The disappearance of paddy fields, which were an important element in the State's natural drainage system, has disturbed the ecological balance. This has brought environmental groups into the campaign to save the fields.
The Kerala Conservation of Paddy Land and Wetland Bill, which the Assembly passed on Thursday, contains provisions designed to encourage rice cultivation and protect the environment.
The bill came before the Assembly with several changes recommended by the select committee. One of them provides for payment of bonus to rice cultivators. The bonus will be fixed taking into account the cost of production and the need to assure the farmer a reasonable income.
The government accepted a few more amendments on the floor of the house. One of them allows the farmer to convert up to five cents in urban areas and ten cents in rural areas for residential purposes.
The bill prescribes a jail term of six months to two years and a fine of Rs50,000 to Rs100,000 for offenders. During the debate, Kerala Congress leader KM Mani pointed out that the provision to award punishment even for offences committed before the bill was enacted was unconstitutional. Thereupon Revenue Minister KP Rajendran agreed to drop it.
The Nelkrishi Samrakshana Vedi (Paddy Cultivation Protection Front), an umbrella organization of environmental groups, has said the government will be able to permit continued conversion of paddy fields by invoking the "public causes" provision. It wants a moratorium on reclamation of fields and wetlands even for public purposes until the State has achieved food security.
Recently the State government took up a food security scheme which envisages raising crops on fallow lands with the help of Kudumbasree, comprising women's self-help groups. The scheme is not limited to rice.
Like earlier measures, the new ones too do not address the core problem. Farmers cannot be forced to raise a crop that is not remunerative on pain of imprisonment.--Gulf Today, Sharjah, July 28, 2008.
The measure contains loopholes which may well defeat its purpose. One of its provisions permits the government to acquire the fields for any public purpose. Another allows the land owner to raise other crops by way of "rotation of crops."
Rice, once a major crop of Kerala, has been on the decline since the birth of the State. The process has gained speed in recent years. According to official figures, during the eighth, ninth and tenth five-year plans, covering the period 1992-2007, the area under paddy shrank annually by 22,000 hectares, 13,000 hectares and 11,657 hectares respectively. Currently, the area under paddy is less than 275,000 hectares. Many farmers abandoned rice cultivation as high wages and input costs made it uneconomical.
Wage levels in the State are among the highest in the country, thanks to the farm labour unions' bargaining capacity. Fragmentation of holdings resulting from the rise in population in the early part of the last century also contributed to the development. Many holdings were too small to permit the use of machines. Even large ones could not use machines because of opposition from the unions.
The much acclaimed land reform made its contribution too. The tenants, who benefited from it, wanted their children to take up white-collar jobs instead of going into farming. In their hands, land became an asset to be used to further their middle class ambitions. Those who retained interest in farming switched to remunerative cash crops. Those who lost interest in it either sold the land or left it fallow and switched to other occupations.
Over the years, the government took several steps to restore rice to its former glory, but did not succeed. In 2004-05, the Agriculture department launched a scheme to grow paddy on fallow land. Two years later, an official report acknowledged that it had not been effective.
A law that prohibits the use of paddy fields for other purposes except with the government's prior permission has been in force for many years already. This has not prevented the raising of other crops in such fields or their conversion into housing plots.
Chief Minister VS Achuthanandan, while in the opposition, had personally led a campaign to save paddy fields. The agitation took the form of wanton destruction of banana plantations raised on paddy fields.
The disappearance of paddy fields, which were an important element in the State's natural drainage system, has disturbed the ecological balance. This has brought environmental groups into the campaign to save the fields.
The Kerala Conservation of Paddy Land and Wetland Bill, which the Assembly passed on Thursday, contains provisions designed to encourage rice cultivation and protect the environment.
The bill came before the Assembly with several changes recommended by the select committee. One of them provides for payment of bonus to rice cultivators. The bonus will be fixed taking into account the cost of production and the need to assure the farmer a reasonable income.
The government accepted a few more amendments on the floor of the house. One of them allows the farmer to convert up to five cents in urban areas and ten cents in rural areas for residential purposes.
The bill prescribes a jail term of six months to two years and a fine of Rs50,000 to Rs100,000 for offenders. During the debate, Kerala Congress leader KM Mani pointed out that the provision to award punishment even for offences committed before the bill was enacted was unconstitutional. Thereupon Revenue Minister KP Rajendran agreed to drop it.
The Nelkrishi Samrakshana Vedi (Paddy Cultivation Protection Front), an umbrella organization of environmental groups, has said the government will be able to permit continued conversion of paddy fields by invoking the "public causes" provision. It wants a moratorium on reclamation of fields and wetlands even for public purposes until the State has achieved food security.
Recently the State government took up a food security scheme which envisages raising crops on fallow lands with the help of Kudumbasree, comprising women's self-help groups. The scheme is not limited to rice.
Like earlier measures, the new ones too do not address the core problem. Farmers cannot be forced to raise a crop that is not remunerative on pain of imprisonment.--Gulf Today, Sharjah, July 28, 2008.
Monday, July 21, 2008
Delhi developments land small parties in trouble
The political crisis at the Centre has upset the calculations of some of Kerala's small parties, mostly breakaway factions of various entities. They now have to make fresh plans to ensure their survival.
The State has a plethora of small parties, all breakaway factions of parties which saw better days in the past. Some of these factions were in the process of migration to other parties. The new national equations will compel them to review their plans.
Some of the small parties have been aligned with the Left Democratic Front or the United Democratic Front since long. As constituents of the fronts, which have been alternating in power, they command influence far in excess of their strength. Despite their weak base the fronts have been ready to carry them along as they have pockets of influence and are credited with the ability to tilt the balance in closely fought elections.
When the UDF was in power, Chief Minister Oommen Chandy tried to cut to size the Kerala Congress factions led by TM Jacob and R. Balakrishna Pillai. Both pulled out of the alliance. On the eve of the Assembly elections, the Congress wooed them back.
When the LDF came to power, the CPI-M denied Cabinet representation to the Congress (Socialist), which later became part of the National Congress Party, and to the Kerala Congress (Secular), which had only one member each in the Assembly. Both the parties are now out of the LDF.
The NCP's legislative strength rose to two when K. Karunakaran's Democratic Indira Congress merged in that party. Yet the LDF threw it out of the alliance since the CPI-M's central leadership did not favour any truck with the Karunakaran faction.
The secular credentials of the Janata Dal (S) became suspect in the eyes of the LDF when its Karnataka unit broke its alliance with the Congress and entered into a power-sharing arrangement with the Bharatiya Janata Party. The move was spearheaded by HD Kumaraswamy, son of the party's national president and former Prime Minister, HD Deva Gowda.
The Karnataka development embarrassed the party's Kerala unit. Its president, MP Veerendrakumar, is a member of the Lok Sabha. The party also has three members in the Assembly. They include Transport Minister Mathew T. Thomas and Veerendrakumar's son, MV Shreyamskumar. They were all elected as LDF candidates.
In a bid to save its membership of the LDF, the State unit disowned Deve Gowda's leadership. Thereafter Veerendrakumar negotiated for its merger in Mulayam Singh Yadav's Samajwadi Party. Yadav having gone to the United Progressive Alliance government's rescue when the Left Front withdrew support to it, he has no option but to drop the merger plan.
It is not clear how the new developments will affect the fortunes of A. Neelalohitadasan Nadar, who broke away from the Janata Dal (S) some time ago and is now in Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Mayawati's Bahujan Samaj Party. A Janata Dal (S) nominee in the EK Nayanar Ministry, Neelalohitadasan Nadar had to quit following allegations of sexual harassment, levelled by Nalini Netto, an IAS officer, and Pragati Srivastava, an Indian Forest Service officer. In the Srivastava case, he was convicted. His appeal against the decision is pending. The Netto case is still before the trial court.
The Delhi developments have enhanced the BSP's clout. CPI-M general secretary Prakash Karat was in Lucknow recently to make friends with Mayawati. All this may not help Neelalohitadasan Nadar since the LDF may not be willing to do business with him in view of the pending cases.
Another person whose fate hangs in the balance is Karunakaran's son, K Muraleedharan. He did not return to the Congress with his father and remains president of the NCP's State unit.
The NCP is a constituent of the UPA, and its national president, Sharad Pawar, is Agriculture Minister in the Manmohan Singh government. Muraleedharan feels that his interests will be best served by joining the LDF rather than the UDF. However, Pawar does not want to give up his association with the Congress. It remains to be seen how Muraleedharan resolves the dilemma.
The lone MP elected on the Kerala Congress (Joseph) ticket has been under pressure to vote for the confidence motion in the Lok Sabha or at least abstain from voting. Since the KC (J) is a constituent of the LDF and has representation in the State Cabinet, it cannot be a party to any such arrangement. –Gulf Today, Sharjah, July21, 2008.
The State has a plethora of small parties, all breakaway factions of parties which saw better days in the past. Some of these factions were in the process of migration to other parties. The new national equations will compel them to review their plans.
Some of the small parties have been aligned with the Left Democratic Front or the United Democratic Front since long. As constituents of the fronts, which have been alternating in power, they command influence far in excess of their strength. Despite their weak base the fronts have been ready to carry them along as they have pockets of influence and are credited with the ability to tilt the balance in closely fought elections.
When the UDF was in power, Chief Minister Oommen Chandy tried to cut to size the Kerala Congress factions led by TM Jacob and R. Balakrishna Pillai. Both pulled out of the alliance. On the eve of the Assembly elections, the Congress wooed them back.
When the LDF came to power, the CPI-M denied Cabinet representation to the Congress (Socialist), which later became part of the National Congress Party, and to the Kerala Congress (Secular), which had only one member each in the Assembly. Both the parties are now out of the LDF.
The NCP's legislative strength rose to two when K. Karunakaran's Democratic Indira Congress merged in that party. Yet the LDF threw it out of the alliance since the CPI-M's central leadership did not favour any truck with the Karunakaran faction.
The secular credentials of the Janata Dal (S) became suspect in the eyes of the LDF when its Karnataka unit broke its alliance with the Congress and entered into a power-sharing arrangement with the Bharatiya Janata Party. The move was spearheaded by HD Kumaraswamy, son of the party's national president and former Prime Minister, HD Deva Gowda.
The Karnataka development embarrassed the party's Kerala unit. Its president, MP Veerendrakumar, is a member of the Lok Sabha. The party also has three members in the Assembly. They include Transport Minister Mathew T. Thomas and Veerendrakumar's son, MV Shreyamskumar. They were all elected as LDF candidates.
In a bid to save its membership of the LDF, the State unit disowned Deve Gowda's leadership. Thereafter Veerendrakumar negotiated for its merger in Mulayam Singh Yadav's Samajwadi Party. Yadav having gone to the United Progressive Alliance government's rescue when the Left Front withdrew support to it, he has no option but to drop the merger plan.
It is not clear how the new developments will affect the fortunes of A. Neelalohitadasan Nadar, who broke away from the Janata Dal (S) some time ago and is now in Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Mayawati's Bahujan Samaj Party. A Janata Dal (S) nominee in the EK Nayanar Ministry, Neelalohitadasan Nadar had to quit following allegations of sexual harassment, levelled by Nalini Netto, an IAS officer, and Pragati Srivastava, an Indian Forest Service officer. In the Srivastava case, he was convicted. His appeal against the decision is pending. The Netto case is still before the trial court.
The Delhi developments have enhanced the BSP's clout. CPI-M general secretary Prakash Karat was in Lucknow recently to make friends with Mayawati. All this may not help Neelalohitadasan Nadar since the LDF may not be willing to do business with him in view of the pending cases.
Another person whose fate hangs in the balance is Karunakaran's son, K Muraleedharan. He did not return to the Congress with his father and remains president of the NCP's State unit.
The NCP is a constituent of the UPA, and its national president, Sharad Pawar, is Agriculture Minister in the Manmohan Singh government. Muraleedharan feels that his interests will be best served by joining the LDF rather than the UDF. However, Pawar does not want to give up his association with the Congress. It remains to be seen how Muraleedharan resolves the dilemma.
The lone MP elected on the Kerala Congress (Joseph) ticket has been under pressure to vote for the confidence motion in the Lok Sabha or at least abstain from voting. Since the KC (J) is a constituent of the LDF and has representation in the State Cabinet, it cannot be a party to any such arrangement. –Gulf Today, Sharjah, July21, 2008.
Friday, July 18, 2008
Can Kerala become a civilized society which resolves its problems peacefully?
Political parties organizing agitations as the election approaches and creating the necessary provocation if they believe clashes will do them good are not unusual. However, the events of the last few weeks of conflict cannot be dismissed in that vein. There were several events which raised questions like whether we are a civilized society and whether we still have the ability to find solutions to problems in a peaceful, constitutional manner. Among them are the violent incidents that occurred during the agitations conducted by political parties using student and youth affiliates and the response of the government to them. The arrogance involved in the declarations of panchayats, managements and teachers’ organizations that they would not teach textbooks prescribed by the government and the childishness in the student movement’s statement that in that event of their not teaching the book they would are equally deplorable. But when the big brother sitting in the State Assembly takes foreign policy in his hands how can the little brother sitting in the panchayat be blamed for taking the education policy in his hands? The toad wants to fly over the hill and the frog wants to fly over the mountain.
The accepted Kerala style is to solve problems at someone else’s expense. The newest example is the decision to revise bus fares. The Electricity Board’s rate revision plan is cooking in the kitchen. It is the people who taxes, direct or indirect, who have to bear the burden. Corruption and inefficiency are the main reasons why public sector institutions, controlled by public servants or officials, are in the red.
This year the Finance Minister donated Rs. 700 crores to the Kerala State Road Transport Corporation, which has been incurring losses for years. The government certainly has a duty to help a public sector organization in distress. But he should not be like Santa Claus who comes dressed up year after year to distribute gifts to children. A good administrator, while employing tax-payer’s money to rescue an institution, has to ensure that it spends the money well and improves its performance. Otherwise he will have to keep putting money in again and again.
It was in the name of fuel price rise that the government sanctioned an increase in bus fares last week. The decision has invited criticism from many quarters. It has been pointed out that while Kerala revised the rates more than once in the last seven years on this ground there was not even one revision in Tamil Nadu, and that at present the rates her are twice as much as in the neighbouring State. In comparing the State transport system with Tamil Nadu’s we cannot overlook the fact that both per capita income and wage levels in Kerala are higher. At the same time, we ignore the possibility of the KSRTC losing passengers to the railways as the bus fare is now twice as much as the rail fare. Tamil Nadu has a decentralized transport system. All transport corporations except the one operating in Chennai city have been making profits for years. If their working is studied, it may be possible to find ways to save the KSRTC.
In the first year of the present government, the Cooperation Minister arranged crores of rupees to save the writers’ cooperative, Sahitya Pravarthaka Sahakarana Sangham. The latest information is that its financial situation continues to be bad. It would have been a wonder if it were otherwise. Why should the people who run an institution bother to improve its performance if there is some to write out cheques from time to time to bail them out? It is the belief that the public is an ass that gives the rulers the courage to spend public money as they like. So long as this belief is not corrected, more burdens will keep falling on the public. After all, it is the ass’s duty to carry burden.
For some years, whichever front is in power, the Electricity Minister has been going to New Delhi regularly to seek more time for reorganization of the Electricity Board. AK Balan is no different. Recently he sought and got a few more months’ time from the Union Energy Minister. A law enacted by Parliament requires all States to reorganize the Electricity Board. The time fixed to complete the process is over. Just as the Walancherry panchayat has the responsibility to follow the curriculum adopted by the State government the Kerala government has the responsibility to ensure that the Electricity Board functions according top the scheme laid down in the Central law. The former United Democratic Front could not discharge that responsibility. The present Left Democratic Front is also not able to do it.
In the Board there are forces that can frighten any minister. So the reorganization is not taking place. The minister does not also have the courage to tell the Centre that he is not able to do what is needed and get himself freed from the responsibility to reorganize the Board. This is not the problem of the Electricity Minister alone. When one looks at the working of the police, it is difficult to say the minister is running the department or the department is running the minister. It has been said that a people get the kind of government they deserve. Is it that the Malayalis deserve a government that shivers in front of seen and unseen powers?
Many problems that Kerala faces today evade solution because the government lacks the strength to face them truthfully. “Truthfully” needs to be underlined. Official centres themselves have admitted the presence of mafia gangs in different fields. The authorities fail to prevent the activities of not only powerful vested interests but also those involved in small crimes. Since there is no fear of getting caught or being punished, crimes increase.
In this disgusting scenario, it is comforting that there are indications that we have not completely lost our ability to become a civilized society. Fining for throwing garbage out, cancellation of permit of vehicle involved in an accident and prosecution for damaging a bus during a demonstration are not a big deal. Yet such news conveys the message that the authorities are ready to apprehend wrongdoers and bring them to book.
The most hopeful news is the interim recommendation of the KN Panicker Committee to make some changes in the controversial Social Science textbook. Those agitating against the book did not have faith in the committee. In fact, the UDF has set up a parallel committee. Many, including not only LDF supporters but also two UDF constituents, had rejected the allegation that the book was anti-religion. This writer had pointed out that though there is no substance in the allegations the standard of the book is of low. The committee’s proposal to rewrite parts of the book provides an opportunity to raise the standard.
The controversial book was prepared as part of a comprehensive programme for revision of textbook. Its low standard shows that those who were entrusted with the task had failed in their duty. In the circumstances, it will be appropriate to examine all textbooks prepared as part of the programme and ensure that they are of good quality. If the government is not ready to do this, there will be room to suspect that the committee’s recommendation is aimed at appeasing a religious group which has been alienated by the book and drawing it close to the LDF in the name of the nuclear deal.
Based on column “Nerkkazhcha” appearing in Kerala Kaumudi dated July 17, 2008
The accepted Kerala style is to solve problems at someone else’s expense. The newest example is the decision to revise bus fares. The Electricity Board’s rate revision plan is cooking in the kitchen. It is the people who taxes, direct or indirect, who have to bear the burden. Corruption and inefficiency are the main reasons why public sector institutions, controlled by public servants or officials, are in the red.
This year the Finance Minister donated Rs. 700 crores to the Kerala State Road Transport Corporation, which has been incurring losses for years. The government certainly has a duty to help a public sector organization in distress. But he should not be like Santa Claus who comes dressed up year after year to distribute gifts to children. A good administrator, while employing tax-payer’s money to rescue an institution, has to ensure that it spends the money well and improves its performance. Otherwise he will have to keep putting money in again and again.
It was in the name of fuel price rise that the government sanctioned an increase in bus fares last week. The decision has invited criticism from many quarters. It has been pointed out that while Kerala revised the rates more than once in the last seven years on this ground there was not even one revision in Tamil Nadu, and that at present the rates her are twice as much as in the neighbouring State. In comparing the State transport system with Tamil Nadu’s we cannot overlook the fact that both per capita income and wage levels in Kerala are higher. At the same time, we ignore the possibility of the KSRTC losing passengers to the railways as the bus fare is now twice as much as the rail fare. Tamil Nadu has a decentralized transport system. All transport corporations except the one operating in Chennai city have been making profits for years. If their working is studied, it may be possible to find ways to save the KSRTC.
In the first year of the present government, the Cooperation Minister arranged crores of rupees to save the writers’ cooperative, Sahitya Pravarthaka Sahakarana Sangham. The latest information is that its financial situation continues to be bad. It would have been a wonder if it were otherwise. Why should the people who run an institution bother to improve its performance if there is some to write out cheques from time to time to bail them out? It is the belief that the public is an ass that gives the rulers the courage to spend public money as they like. So long as this belief is not corrected, more burdens will keep falling on the public. After all, it is the ass’s duty to carry burden.
For some years, whichever front is in power, the Electricity Minister has been going to New Delhi regularly to seek more time for reorganization of the Electricity Board. AK Balan is no different. Recently he sought and got a few more months’ time from the Union Energy Minister. A law enacted by Parliament requires all States to reorganize the Electricity Board. The time fixed to complete the process is over. Just as the Walancherry panchayat has the responsibility to follow the curriculum adopted by the State government the Kerala government has the responsibility to ensure that the Electricity Board functions according top the scheme laid down in the Central law. The former United Democratic Front could not discharge that responsibility. The present Left Democratic Front is also not able to do it.
In the Board there are forces that can frighten any minister. So the reorganization is not taking place. The minister does not also have the courage to tell the Centre that he is not able to do what is needed and get himself freed from the responsibility to reorganize the Board. This is not the problem of the Electricity Minister alone. When one looks at the working of the police, it is difficult to say the minister is running the department or the department is running the minister. It has been said that a people get the kind of government they deserve. Is it that the Malayalis deserve a government that shivers in front of seen and unseen powers?
Many problems that Kerala faces today evade solution because the government lacks the strength to face them truthfully. “Truthfully” needs to be underlined. Official centres themselves have admitted the presence of mafia gangs in different fields. The authorities fail to prevent the activities of not only powerful vested interests but also those involved in small crimes. Since there is no fear of getting caught or being punished, crimes increase.
In this disgusting scenario, it is comforting that there are indications that we have not completely lost our ability to become a civilized society. Fining for throwing garbage out, cancellation of permit of vehicle involved in an accident and prosecution for damaging a bus during a demonstration are not a big deal. Yet such news conveys the message that the authorities are ready to apprehend wrongdoers and bring them to book.
The most hopeful news is the interim recommendation of the KN Panicker Committee to make some changes in the controversial Social Science textbook. Those agitating against the book did not have faith in the committee. In fact, the UDF has set up a parallel committee. Many, including not only LDF supporters but also two UDF constituents, had rejected the allegation that the book was anti-religion. This writer had pointed out that though there is no substance in the allegations the standard of the book is of low. The committee’s proposal to rewrite parts of the book provides an opportunity to raise the standard.
The controversial book was prepared as part of a comprehensive programme for revision of textbook. Its low standard shows that those who were entrusted with the task had failed in their duty. In the circumstances, it will be appropriate to examine all textbooks prepared as part of the programme and ensure that they are of good quality. If the government is not ready to do this, there will be room to suspect that the committee’s recommendation is aimed at appeasing a religious group which has been alienated by the book and drawing it close to the LDF in the name of the nuclear deal.
Based on column “Nerkkazhcha” appearing in Kerala Kaumudi dated July 17, 2008
Wednesday, July 16, 2008
Hands off China campaign in Britain
The Communist Party of Great Britain (Marxist-Leninist), of which Harpal Brar, an Indian immigrant, is the chairman, is launching a campaign to defend the sovereignty and integrity of China.
The campaign will be formally launched at a meeting in London on Saturday. Apart from Brar, two other communists, Jack Shapiro and Keith Bennett, are listed as speakers.
Brar, who went to Britain as a student, first set up a Stalinist party and later became a Maoist.
A notice at the CPGB-ML website says, “The Hands off China campaign is being set up in the light of the vitriolic and deceitful propaganda campaign being waged in the imperialist press against China, as well as the protracted campaign being waged by the US and its allies aimed at destabilizing, weakening and encircling the country.”
The campaign will be formally launched at a meeting in London on Saturday. Apart from Brar, two other communists, Jack Shapiro and Keith Bennett, are listed as speakers.
Brar, who went to Britain as a student, first set up a Stalinist party and later became a Maoist.
A notice at the CPGB-ML website says, “The Hands off China campaign is being set up in the light of the vitriolic and deceitful propaganda campaign being waged in the imperialist press against China, as well as the protracted campaign being waged by the US and its allies aimed at destabilizing, weakening and encircling the country.”
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)